Healthcare—Let’s nationalize it!
I’m sorry! I have been having computer problems and was not able to post any articles on Monday and Tuesday. Among other problems, I could not copy and paste from my Word copy to my blog “creation” page. I did finally post Wednesday morning. The first three paragraphs of that post stated:
“‘Healthcare Reform’: Of course, what is about to be considered in the House is NOT reform. It is a proposal for the federal government to TAKE CONTROL of healthcare in this nation—either immediately or ultimately.
Therefore, unlike the ‘Cap and Trade’ bill passed by the House of Representatives which was amended—300 pages—the DAY OF the final vote, it is incumbent upon Congress to actually know what they are voting on! Consequently, the following pledge from every member of Congress—House of Representatives and Senate—should be required by the voters of this nation!
The Pledge is from http://www.letfreedomringusa.com/ and is available in PDF form for you to download and send a copy of to your Representative and Senators. (There are two pages: one for House members and one for Senate members.) The address for each is available at http://www.house.gov/ and http://www.senate.gov/. Please note, as stated on Saturday’s post, the stated desire of the Speaker of the House is to have this bill voted on and passed before the August recess. Time is of the essence.”
Saturday and Monday, I sent the downloaded pledge to the following members of Congress:
House of Representatives:
Aaron Schock (18th District) [my Representative]
509 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515
http://www.schock.house.gov/
Mark Kirk (10th District in Illinois) [rumored to be contemplating a run for the Senate]
1030 Longworth House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515
http://www.kirk.house.gov/
Speaker of the House
Nancy Pelosi (D-8th District, California)
235 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515
http://www.pelosi.house.gov/
Majority Leader
Steny Hoyer (D—5th District, Maryland)
1705 Longworth House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515
http://www.hoyer.house.gov/
Majority Whip
James Clyburn (D—6th District, South Carolina)
2135 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515
http://www.clyburn.house.gov/
Democratic Caucus Chair
John Larson (D—1st District, Connecticut)
106 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515
http://www.larson.house.gov/
Minority Leader
John Boehner (R-8th District, Ohio)
1011 Longworth House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515
http://www.johnboehner.house.gov/
Minority Whip
Eric Cantor (R—7th District, Virginia)
329 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515
http://www.cantor.house.gov/
Republican Conference Chair
Mike Pence (R—6th District, Indiana)
1431 Longworth House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515
http://www.mikepence.house.gov/
Republican Policy Committee Chair
Thaddeus McCotter (R—11th District, Michigan)
1632 Longworth House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515
http://www.mccotter.house.gov/
Senate:
Richard J. Durbin (Majority Whip) [my Illinois Senator]
309 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
http://www.durbin.senate.gov/ (web site)
Roland Burris [my Illinois Senator]
523 Dirksen Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
http://www.burris.senate.gov/
Majority Leader and Democratic Conference Chair
Harry Reid (D—Nevada)
522 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
http://www.reid.senate.gov/ (web site)
Majority Whip
(See Dick Durbin)
Democrat Policy Committee Chair
Byron Dorgan (D—North Dakota)
322 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
http://www.dorgan.senate.gov/ (web site)
Democratic Conference Chair
(See Harry Reid)
Minority Leader
Mitch McConnell (R—Kentucky)
361A Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
http://www.mcconnell.senate.gov/ (web site)
Minority Whip
Jon Kyl (R—Arizona)
730 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
http://www.kyl.senate.gov/ (web site)
Republican Policy Committee Chair
John Ensign (R—Nevada)
119 Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
http://www.ensign.senate.gov/ (web site)
Republican Conference Chair
Lamar Alexander (R—Tennessee)
455 Dirksen Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
http://www.alexander.senate.gov/ (web site)
I’ll post who sends the pledge back to me and who does not!
Meantime, I was watching C-SPAN Tuesday night instead of the All-Star game and heard that the proposed healthcare bill could be downloaded in PDF form. Not surprisingly for this Congress, it is 1018 pages long according to the information on the PDF file. (Obviously, I did NOT count the pages.) Do you actually believe most Representatives will actually read all 1018 pages? Do you actually believe most Representatives will actually understand the content of the bill and possible ramifications of the bill IF they quickly vote on the bill? Is this the Representative government envisioned by the Founding Fathers?
You can download the PDF file at http://www.energycommerce.house.gov/. It is 1.69 MB. After you get to the home page, clink on Publications. The new page will have you clink on the healthcare publication. Scroll down to the end of this page and you have PDF files for the bill text, bill summary, and bill fact sheets. I just downloaded the bill text since the others are information the bill’s sponsors want you to read—it’s the bill’s propaganda report. No! I haven’t read the bill yet which probably puts me in the same position as most members of the House.
Also remember in the “Cap and Trade” bill a 300 plus page amendment was added at 3:09 AM EDT the day the bill was voted on! According to one Republican that Tuesday night—the 14th, the amendment was needed to “buy” enough votes to get the bill passed. I expect the same to occur with this bill—business as usual. It seems the leaderships’ position is a “bad” bill is better than no bill. However, it’s important to remember one of my favorite sayings. “The best laid plans of mice and men often go astray.” (Roberts Burns) And this bill doesn’t seem to come close to anything resembling “the best laid plans!”
Get this! The official title of the bill is: “America’s Affordable Health Choices Act of 2009.” Obviously, it is easier to name a bill optimistically than it is to actually achieve the result desired as expressed in the name of the bill! Know this without exception! It WILL COST MORE than planned! (And the plan says it will cost over a trillion dollars!) It will be MORE COMPLICATED than hoped! It will ultimately end up with ONLY ONE CHOICE—THE GOVERNMENT CHOICE!
As former Senator Everett McKinley Dirksen of Pekin, Illinois is purported to have said: “A trillion here, a trillion there and pretty soon you’re talking about real money!” Oops! I made a mistake. He said “a million here, a million there.” Inflation has set in and increased it to a trillion here and a trillion there. Who knows the difference?
Remember this from my July 11th post: “One of the speakers for the Republicans was Congressman John Fleming of Louisiana. Congressman Fleming is a medical doctor. Dr./Representative Fleming told of an online petition he has prepared to be presented to the House of Representatives. The petition is simple enough. It states that members of Congress, who vote for a national healthcare plan, should also be REQUIRED to be a participant in that plan.
That seems immensely reasonable to me. I think both those who support national healthcare and those who oppose the concept should be able to agree that members of Congress should also belong to the same program everyone else is required to accept. If you agree, the online petition is available at http://www.fleming.house.gov/. I have already signed.”
Have you signed the petition? It seems to me that if any bill passed is good enough for all American citizens; then it should be good enough for ALL members of Congress who voted for it!
Also from my July 15th post:
“Actually, it is a sign of the degree that representative government in this nation has fallen that it is even considered necessary that citizens feel compelled to ask their elected representatives to actually read—not understand—an important bill before voting on that bill. Actually, it is a sign of the degree that representative government in this nation has fallen that it is even considered necessary that citizens feel compelled to ask their elected representatives to actually post the proposed bill, in its entirety, on the Internet for at least 72 hours before voting on that bill. How can a Congressman represent his constituency if he does NOT even know what he is voting on? How can a voter know if his Congressmen are adequately representing his position if he does NOT even know what they are voting on?
I was a member of a local school board for four years—a responsibility far less important than being a representative of the entire nation. In those four years, I read, questioned, asked for information, and UNDERSTOOD what I was asked to vote on BEFORE voting on the proposal—that was true of EVERY proposal and I NEVER missed a board meeting in four years. Shouldn’t the same be expected of every single member of Congress? Shouldn’t the same be DEMANDED of every single member of Congress? Just who are they representing?
Is the fact that the House of Representatives is so eager to pass this legislation so quickly a demonstration of how contemptuously they hold the voters in this nation?”
I’m sorry! I have been having computer problems and was not able to post any articles on Monday and Tuesday. Among other problems, I could not copy and paste from my Word copy to my blog “creation” page. I did finally post Wednesday morning. The first three paragraphs of that post stated:
“‘Healthcare Reform’: Of course, what is about to be considered in the House is NOT reform. It is a proposal for the federal government to TAKE CONTROL of healthcare in this nation—either immediately or ultimately.
Therefore, unlike the ‘Cap and Trade’ bill passed by the House of Representatives which was amended—300 pages—the DAY OF the final vote, it is incumbent upon Congress to actually know what they are voting on! Consequently, the following pledge from every member of Congress—House of Representatives and Senate—should be required by the voters of this nation!
The Pledge is from http://www.letfreedomringusa.com/ and is available in PDF form for you to download and send a copy of to your Representative and Senators. (There are two pages: one for House members and one for Senate members.) The address for each is available at http://www.house.gov/ and http://www.senate.gov/. Please note, as stated on Saturday’s post, the stated desire of the Speaker of the House is to have this bill voted on and passed before the August recess. Time is of the essence.”
Saturday and Monday, I sent the downloaded pledge to the following members of Congress:
House of Representatives:
Aaron Schock (18th District) [my Representative]
509 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515
http://www.schock.house.gov/
Mark Kirk (10th District in Illinois) [rumored to be contemplating a run for the Senate]
1030 Longworth House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515
http://www.kirk.house.gov/
Speaker of the House
Nancy Pelosi (D-8th District, California)
235 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515
http://www.pelosi.house.gov/
Majority Leader
Steny Hoyer (D—5th District, Maryland)
1705 Longworth House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515
http://www.hoyer.house.gov/
Majority Whip
James Clyburn (D—6th District, South Carolina)
2135 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515
http://www.clyburn.house.gov/
Democratic Caucus Chair
John Larson (D—1st District, Connecticut)
106 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515
http://www.larson.house.gov/
Minority Leader
John Boehner (R-8th District, Ohio)
1011 Longworth House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515
http://www.johnboehner.house.gov/
Minority Whip
Eric Cantor (R—7th District, Virginia)
329 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515
http://www.cantor.house.gov/
Republican Conference Chair
Mike Pence (R—6th District, Indiana)
1431 Longworth House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515
http://www.mikepence.house.gov/
Republican Policy Committee Chair
Thaddeus McCotter (R—11th District, Michigan)
1632 Longworth House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515
http://www.mccotter.house.gov/
Senate:
Richard J. Durbin (Majority Whip) [my Illinois Senator]
309 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
http://www.durbin.senate.gov/ (web site)
Roland Burris [my Illinois Senator]
523 Dirksen Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
http://www.burris.senate.gov/
Majority Leader and Democratic Conference Chair
Harry Reid (D—Nevada)
522 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
http://www.reid.senate.gov/ (web site)
Majority Whip
(See Dick Durbin)
Democrat Policy Committee Chair
Byron Dorgan (D—North Dakota)
322 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
http://www.dorgan.senate.gov/ (web site)
Democratic Conference Chair
(See Harry Reid)
Minority Leader
Mitch McConnell (R—Kentucky)
361A Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
http://www.mcconnell.senate.gov/ (web site)
Minority Whip
Jon Kyl (R—Arizona)
730 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
http://www.kyl.senate.gov/ (web site)
Republican Policy Committee Chair
John Ensign (R—Nevada)
119 Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
http://www.ensign.senate.gov/ (web site)
Republican Conference Chair
Lamar Alexander (R—Tennessee)
455 Dirksen Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
http://www.alexander.senate.gov/ (web site)
I’ll post who sends the pledge back to me and who does not!
Meantime, I was watching C-SPAN Tuesday night instead of the All-Star game and heard that the proposed healthcare bill could be downloaded in PDF form. Not surprisingly for this Congress, it is 1018 pages long according to the information on the PDF file. (Obviously, I did NOT count the pages.) Do you actually believe most Representatives will actually read all 1018 pages? Do you actually believe most Representatives will actually understand the content of the bill and possible ramifications of the bill IF they quickly vote on the bill? Is this the Representative government envisioned by the Founding Fathers?
You can download the PDF file at http://www.energycommerce.house.gov/. It is 1.69 MB. After you get to the home page, clink on Publications. The new page will have you clink on the healthcare publication. Scroll down to the end of this page and you have PDF files for the bill text, bill summary, and bill fact sheets. I just downloaded the bill text since the others are information the bill’s sponsors want you to read—it’s the bill’s propaganda report. No! I haven’t read the bill yet which probably puts me in the same position as most members of the House.
Also remember in the “Cap and Trade” bill a 300 plus page amendment was added at 3:09 AM EDT the day the bill was voted on! According to one Republican that Tuesday night—the 14th, the amendment was needed to “buy” enough votes to get the bill passed. I expect the same to occur with this bill—business as usual. It seems the leaderships’ position is a “bad” bill is better than no bill. However, it’s important to remember one of my favorite sayings. “The best laid plans of mice and men often go astray.” (Roberts Burns) And this bill doesn’t seem to come close to anything resembling “the best laid plans!”
Get this! The official title of the bill is: “America’s Affordable Health Choices Act of 2009.” Obviously, it is easier to name a bill optimistically than it is to actually achieve the result desired as expressed in the name of the bill! Know this without exception! It WILL COST MORE than planned! (And the plan says it will cost over a trillion dollars!) It will be MORE COMPLICATED than hoped! It will ultimately end up with ONLY ONE CHOICE—THE GOVERNMENT CHOICE!
As former Senator Everett McKinley Dirksen of Pekin, Illinois is purported to have said: “A trillion here, a trillion there and pretty soon you’re talking about real money!” Oops! I made a mistake. He said “a million here, a million there.” Inflation has set in and increased it to a trillion here and a trillion there. Who knows the difference?
Remember this from my July 11th post: “One of the speakers for the Republicans was Congressman John Fleming of Louisiana. Congressman Fleming is a medical doctor. Dr./Representative Fleming told of an online petition he has prepared to be presented to the House of Representatives. The petition is simple enough. It states that members of Congress, who vote for a national healthcare plan, should also be REQUIRED to be a participant in that plan.
That seems immensely reasonable to me. I think both those who support national healthcare and those who oppose the concept should be able to agree that members of Congress should also belong to the same program everyone else is required to accept. If you agree, the online petition is available at http://www.fleming.house.gov/. I have already signed.”
Have you signed the petition? It seems to me that if any bill passed is good enough for all American citizens; then it should be good enough for ALL members of Congress who voted for it!
Also from my July 15th post:
“Actually, it is a sign of the degree that representative government in this nation has fallen that it is even considered necessary that citizens feel compelled to ask their elected representatives to actually read—not understand—an important bill before voting on that bill. Actually, it is a sign of the degree that representative government in this nation has fallen that it is even considered necessary that citizens feel compelled to ask their elected representatives to actually post the proposed bill, in its entirety, on the Internet for at least 72 hours before voting on that bill. How can a Congressman represent his constituency if he does NOT even know what he is voting on? How can a voter know if his Congressmen are adequately representing his position if he does NOT even know what they are voting on?
I was a member of a local school board for four years—a responsibility far less important than being a representative of the entire nation. In those four years, I read, questioned, asked for information, and UNDERSTOOD what I was asked to vote on BEFORE voting on the proposal—that was true of EVERY proposal and I NEVER missed a board meeting in four years. Shouldn’t the same be expected of every single member of Congress? Shouldn’t the same be DEMANDED of every single member of Congress? Just who are they representing?
Is the fact that the House of Representatives is so eager to pass this legislation so quickly a demonstration of how contemptuously they hold the voters in this nation?”
posted by Christian Gunslinger at 5:22 AM
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